What is a Rainbow?
This educational site describes Rainbows without burying the reader
in technical detail. The page
includes links to images of rainbows and even to a picture of Descartes.
Although it has won
numerous awards, the page needs to be divided into subsections/links
for easier navigation. The
site did cite excellent sources and reading materials. Excellent
bibliography, links and further
readings.
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/staff/blynds/rnbw.html/
ASU Science Course
These pages are part of course work at Arizona State University.
The course is listed variously as STE 208, PHS 208, and DCI 594.
The site gives a very clear explanation of how rainbows are formed, with
good links to explanations of terms used.
Why
Inner Bows are Brighter than Outer Bows
http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/rdg/rainbow/light_in.shtml
Double
Bows
http://acept.la.asu.edu/PiN/rdg/rainbow/secondary.shtml
WW2010
This site is offered by the Department of Atmospheric Sciences (DAS)
at the University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). "WW2010" (the weather world 2010
project) is a multimedia instruction module on rainbows and other meteorological
phenomena. The site is extremely detailed but is still easy to navigate
because the hierarchy of links appears in a separate sidebar. Although
the site might be considered scholarly by some, it does not provide any
bibliography.
Primary
Rainbows
http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/guides/mtr/opt/wtr/rnbw/prm.rxml
Secondary
Rainbows
http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gl)/guides/mtr/opt/wtr/rnbw/scnd.rxml
Includes
a nice prismatic display
http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/opt/mch/refr/more.rxml
Halos
and Sundogs
http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gl)/guides/mtr/opt/mch/refr/def.rxml
Rainbows
This site at the University of Illinois Guide to Atmospheric Optics,
Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
describes how rainbows work using simple diagrams, simple text, and colorful
photographs. Designed by Covis, it includes an animated depiction
of light refraction within a raindrop, and provides basic information on
primary and secondary rainbows. Its simplistic approach suggests
an an intended audience at the Secondary School education level.
http://covis.atmos.uiuc.edu/guide/optics/rainbows/html/rainbow.html
The Mathematics of Rainbows
Intended for mathematically mature audiences, this laboratory exercise
is based on a module developed by Steven Janke and published in Modules
in Undergraduate Mathematics and its Applications, 1992. The experiment
helps answer questions about rainbows by examining a mathematical model
of light passing through a water droplet. Funding for this site comes
from the National Science Foundation and the Geometry Center in their support
of the Curriculum Initiative Project at the University of Minnesota.
http://www.geom.umn.edu/education/calc-init/rainbow/
Reeko
This site is clearly intended for children at the primary school
level. While having little to do with rainbows per se, it does offer
simple prism and refraction demonstrations anyone can perform with minimal
materials. For those who like their science heavily packaged, see
the main page at http://www.flash.net/~spartech/ReekoScience.
light
wavelength demonstration
http://www.flash.net/~spartech/ReekoScience/prism.htm
refraction
demonstration
http://www.flash.net/~spartech/ReekoScience/refraction.htm
Zianet
The Zianet site below takes a long time to load (public domain
music on each page/link) and it is difficult to read and navigate.
It does however have good, comprehensive information on rainbows.
The site includes a section on rainbow mythology.
http://www.zianet.com/rainbow/boInfo.htm
Questions About Rainbows
This is a very basic text site in a question/answer format.
The site could be better designed by listing each question as a hyper link
with a link to the answer. None of the words that look like they
should be hyper links actually work as a link.
http://www.deltatech.com/rainbowx.html
Arc Rainbows
The site is actually a transcript of Earth and Sky, a daily
science radio series sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
http://www.earthsky.com/1996/es960313.html
happy not sad
This British site has a question and answer format about specific
questions regarding rainbows and other scientific items of interest.
It is an excerpt from the online version of New Scientist magazine.
http://www.newscientist.com/lastword/answers/lwa018.html
The Rainbows of Gravity
Rainbows provide a useful analogy in this discussion of gravity's
ability to bend light. This article is not 'light' reading, and has
been published in Analog Science Fiction & Fact Magazine.
Perhaps a writing class would find this useful.
http://www.npl.washington.edu/AV/altvw29.html
Rain, sun, and bows in rainbows
This site is part of the "Bog Hopper," a publication from
the Science Museum of Minnesota. The site answers a few specific questions
about rainbows. No graphics, and information is sketchy.
http://www.sci.mus.mn.us/general_info/bhop/rainbow.html
Meteorological Phenomena
Dr. Sharon Curtis' page on meteorological phenomena includes a short
but informative description of rainbow mechanics. The picture is
nice, too. The document as a whole has the potential for high quality because it includes good graphics and
explanations, as well as a small bibliography and related links.
The material is suitable for Secondary School ages and up.
http://www.comlab.ox.ac.uk/oucl/users/sharon.curtis/pretties.html#ra
How Light Works
Specifically directed at the fifth grade level, this site is designed
to help students of this age learn about light. In addition to rainbows,
this site discusses concepts related to light absorption and reflection.
Two simple links related to definitions for the terms 'transparent' and
'refraction' are included.
http://pen.k12.va.us/Anthology/Div/Albemarle/Schools/MurrayElem/InstructionalResources/Light/How_Light_Works.html
Refraction, Snell's law, and Total Internal Reflection
This site is part of the lecture notes for PY106, Elementary Physics
II, at Boston University. The site provides detailed information,
including illustrations and mathematical concepts that explain in detail
the physics, mathematics, and laws governing refraction. This is
a scholarly page, but does not cite any references other than a textbook
on the Physics II home page. Nice diagrams and lots of math appear to make
this site appropriate for those with the requisite skills.
http://buphy.bu.edu/py106/notes/Refraction.html
Online Physics Tutorial
This site was developed at the Colegio Franklin Delano Roosevelt
in Lima, Peru, and is part of a larger document on light. Words in
red look as if they are intended to be hyper links to more information,
but do not function as such. Offered through ThinkQuest (see link
at bottom of page), the site is intended for students aged 12 through 19.
Refraction is emphasized, while rainbows are not.
http://library.advanced.org/10796/ch10/ch10.htm#Refraction
Their 'Physics
Today' home page:
http://library.advanced.org/10796/index.html
Chromatic Dispersion
This site is a student project that uses a Java applet to demonstrate
the chromatic dispersion of light and the physics of rainbows.
The information provided is excellent and the applet runs well. The
only difficulty is that the applet graphic is quite large, making it difficult
for the user to read the directions on the screen while simultaneously
manipulating the applet.
http://science.kongju.ac.kr/phys/shin/experiment/ntnujava/Rainbow/rainbow.html
Refraction and Dispersion
Within the University of Oregon Physics Demonstration Catalog, this
page gives specific demonstrations, including diagrams, for producing rainbow
patterns.
http://guernsey.uoregon.edu/~phdemo/demo/Light_and_Optics/LO-Refraction.html#Rainbow
To
see the main page for the University of Oregon Physics Demonstration
Catalog Index: http://guernsey.uoregon.edu/~phdemo/demo/index.html
Why are rainbows curved?
A Scientific American question/answer session about rainbow curvature,
presumably intended for well-educated audiences.
http://www.sciam.com/askexpert/physics/physics22.html
In Terms of Weather
This is a nice weather & meteorology site for primary
and secondary students. Information on each topic is brief.
http://atlenv.bed.ns.doe.ca/udo/weat.html